Halfway to Sanity
Halfway to Sanity | ||||
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Studio album by the Ramones | ||||
Released | September 15, 1987 | |||
Recorded | April 1987 | |||
Studio | Intergalactic, New York City | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 29:53 | |||
Label | Sire | |||
Producer |
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Ramones chronology | ||||
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Singles from Halfway to Sanity | ||||
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Halfway to Sanity is the 10th
The band members disagreed on many things during the album's production, and producer Rey described them as impatient.[citation needed] The band toured the world following the album's release, but certain show dates were cancelled after Richie left the band due to financial conflicts with Johnny. The band hired Blondie drummer Clem Burke (who took the pseudonym "Elvis Ramone") for two shows, until Marky Ramone returned.
Genres varied significantly throughout the album, with some songs showing the influence of
Background
Prior to producing the album, Daniel Rey had opened for the Ramones in the late 1970s as a member of Shrapnel. He had worked with lead singer Joey Ramone and lead guitarist Johnny Ramone separately when writing songs for Too Tough to Die.[2][3] "I was producing a lot of young bands in my basement," Rey explained. "Johnny heard one and said, 'It's better than our last record.' He knew that he could get me cheap and I was the only person who got along with Johnny and Joey at the same time."[3] In his 2012 autobiography, Commando, Johnny Ramone stated that this period was a "stressful time" for the band.[4]
Production
Recording sessions for Halfway to Sanity began in early 1987 at Intergalactic Studios in New York City, described by Rey as "a dingy place in midtown."[5] Drums, guitars and bass guitar were all recorded earlier in the afternoon, while the vocal track was always recorded later in the evening. Rey explained that they did this because "it was quicker to learn songs without any vocal, so they did."[6][7] Joey, however, wanted to work out "how to phrase his singing" and was not a fan of this method of recording.[6] Johnny stated that Dee Dee Ramone, while credited as bass player on the album, didn't actually play on it, with producer Daniel Rey playing his parts instead.[8]
On the band's relationship with producer Daniel Rey, Johnny stated that no one involved with the album would listen to Rey nor let him make the decisions he needed to, adding that Joey and drummer Richie Ramone made it particularly difficult for Rey because they wanted to remix or change tracks.[9] Richie did not get along with Rey, saying that the two would "butt heads" often due to the fact that he only liked writing songs with one other person.[10] Richie has explained that this may have been the reason why he never co-wrote any songs on the album with Joey, saying that Rey "always came with the package."[10] Tour manager Monte Melnick, on the other hand, said Rey eventually befriended all the band members.[3] In 2018, Richie stated that the rift between him and Rey occurred when Richie remixed five songs on the album on a request from Joey and although Johnny approved the work, he refused to credit him for it on the album.[11]
Richie added that Johnny, along with their manager Gary Kurfirst, made the album process difficult by keeping the band on a tight budget. He explained that he himself wanted the music to be more radio-friendly and promote it more so they might have a hit album, but Johnny and Kurfirst did not think it would make a difference. Richie would later recall: "Why would you not want an album to be as successful as it could be? Gary Kurfirst seemed to want to keep the Ramones an underground band, I guess his thinking was, he'd profit more."[12]
The band's publicist Ida Langsam agreed that the band and their record company all felt the need to keep to a strict budget for recording, production and promotion of the Ramones' music. She pointed out that just because much of their album process was done "cut-rate," it did not mean that their performance on the album was not done well. Rather they were trying to find people who could do things more cheaply, along with cheaper places to record, such as Intergalactic Studios, where they had also recorded their previous album, Animal Boy.[13][14] Langsam went on to say that the Ramones were "never afforded the respect a band of their caliber should have," insisting that other bands who were "much less worthy" were more respected. "Everybody thought of them as the local band," she continued, "everybody's friends—'when are you going to break, when are you going to get big, when are you going to reach stardom?'"[13]
Rey claimed that the band was very impatient during the album process, and noted that members, especially Johnny and Joey, weren't getting along. "John was fast in the studio," recalls George Tabb, who was recording with his band the False Prophets at Intergalactic at the same time the Ramones recorded Halfway to Sanity. He called it humorous "because John would be going, 'Enough, enough, it sounds right.' And Joey, the artist, would go, 'I gotta do my vocals, I gotta do my vocals,' and the drummer's going, 'But my drums!' Johnny was like, 'Fuck it. It's the Ramones. It is what it is and comes out like that.' And he was right. It was the Ramones. He was a good businessman about it."[5]
In his book Commando, Johnny Ramone concluded that "the tracks on this one aren't the best. I always had a problem bringing songs into the band unless I was sure they were going to be very good. [...] The other guys brought in things that sucked, but they acted like they were great." However, he cited "I Wanna Live", "Weasel Face", "Bop 'til You Drop" and "Garden of Serenity" as the album's highlights and awarded the album a "B−" grade.[15]
This is the first Ramones album since Leave Home—and their last—to clock in at under 30 minutes.
Musical style and lyrics
The album's opening track, "I Wanna Live", features heavy
Joey wrote the opening track for Side B, "Death of Me", as well as "A Real Cool Time", which True said was a tribute to "summer beach" parties and "New York Cat Clubs," and compared the melody line to the Who's "The Kids Are Alright".[24] The album's longest song is track 11, "Bye Bye Baby", at 4 minutes 33 seconds. It was described as a "tear-jerking" piece by True, and was influenced by '50s/early '60s girl group pop.[25] He wrote that it features a "beautiful chiming guitar sound" that "stands out like a sore thumb" compared to the other songs on the album, because Joey "sings instead of shouting."[25] The song was deemed "Phil Spector-ish" in the WEG Publication's Digital Audio and Compact Disc Review,[21] who also described the album's final track, "Worm Man", as having a "hardcore punk thrashing" style.[21] while True said the latter was similar to the work of Black Flag.[24]
Cover art and photography
I shoot three rolls, Johnny says, 'That's enough.' I say, 'Okay, Johnny. Want to go to another location?' and he says, 'No.' So I say, 'Monte [Melnick],
Warner Brothersgave me $7,500, I can't give them three rolls of film. They'll skin me.' Monte shrugs, 'Don't worry about it. Johnny doesn't want any more pictures.'
George DuBose[3]
The photography for Halfway to Sanity was done by George DuBose, who had also done photography for the band's previous three releases (
Tour and personnel changes
To promote the album, the band played a handful of gigs in South America in February 1987. During the spring and summer of 1987, they toured the United States.[30] At a concert on August 12 in East Hampton, New York, Richie left the band due to financial conflicts with Johnny. Richie stated that he had asked to be given a small percentage of the merchandise income based on his tenure with the band and their use of his name and image, which he claimed Joey and Dee Dee was in favor of, but Johnny would refuse.[31] Richie said that he never felt entitled to a large share as he was not a founding member, but that it was about being a part of the band rather than a hired hand and mentioned feeling left out on tours when the other members would go cash their merchandise checks.[32] Joey would later state, "I felt screwed. Me and Richie were friends. He was more than just the drummer. But he was out for himself. He said he would do the New York shows for $500 a night. I'm sure he felt he had us by the balls, as our album was coming out."[33] Richie later said that he had heard a rumour that Johnny was going to fire him even if he played the shows and that convinced him not to come back to the band.[34] DuBose also explained that Richie "quit right before a gig and wasn't very professional."[35]
Johnny began asking around to see if they could find a replacement drummer, at least for the remainder of the tour.
Because of this, the band's previous drummer, Marky Ramone (who had replaced original drummer Tommy Ramone), was asked to return. He had been fired after Subterranean Jungle, partially for his drumming style but mostly because of his alcoholism. Once he was sober, however, he began playing in Richie Stotts's heavy metal band King Flux, as well as his own band, M-80. Richie's response to Marky's return was that it "would never happen" but it did. Marky had a meeting with John, rehearsed a couple of Ramones songs and said, "Marc, it's like you never left."[36]
Within a week of Burke's departure, Marky was touring with the band again.
During a sold-out Paris concert, fans who were not able to get in to see the performance began to throw stones at the venue, and were consequently tear-gassed by police.[37] It was also common to see moshing and stage diving at their shows, but the band members discouraged this type of behavior. "They hated it and they tried to stop it as much as possible," artist and the band's lighting director Arturo Vega recalled, "but it would happen. Kids are really resourceful. Once the lawsuits started coming in, a lot of clubs tried to ban it, too. Sometimes the security made it difficult for them, you know. Once, we were in Tijuana—and of course in Tijuana, who cares! They were jumping from a balcony that was at least 20 feet (6 m) high. Jumping into the crowd. It was too much. It was great."[33]
The band was banned from playing at
Reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Robert Christgau | C+[38] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 2/10[39] |
Critical
Halfway to Sanity received mixed reviews from critics. When it was released in September 1987, the New York Post praised it as another well produced album by the Ramones, and Billboard said Sire should have released "Go Lil' Camaro Go" as a single.[40] Village Voice critic Robert Christgau gave the album a "C+", writing that, while he felt pained to say it, "with Richie or whoever on the lam, Dee Dee moonlighting as a punk-rapper, Joey frequenting all-acoustic showcases, and Johnny Johnny, a great band has finally worn down into a day job for night people."[38] However, in the United Kingdom, the album received virtually no attention from professional critics. Ramones fanzine writer Mark Bannister explained that critics there thought the album "didn't sound right without some more of Joey's songs to balance out Dee Dee's. There was no equilibrium."[41]
In a retrospective review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album one and a half stars out of five, calling it a "much sharper record" than its predecessor only because it did not overlook the band's "trashy pop roots."[1] While he found the album to be "inconsistent", he praised it as the last release where the band "still sounded like they mattered."[1]
Commercial
The album entered the US
Later use
Two of the tracks on Halfway to Sanity, "Bop 'Til You Drop" and "I Wanna Live", were featured on the band's first
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "I Wanna Live" | Dee Dee Ramone, Daniel Rey | 2:36 |
2. | "Bop 'Til You Drop" | D. Ramone, Johnny Ramone | 2:09 |
3. | "Garden of Serenity" | D. Ramone, Rey | 2:35 |
4. | "Weasel Face" | D. Ramone, Johnny Ramone | 1:49 |
5. | "Go Lil' Camaro Go" | D. Ramone | 2:00 |
6. | "I Know Better Now" | Richie Ramone | 2:37 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
7. | "Death of Me" | Joey Ramone | 2:39 |
8. | "I Lost My Mind" | D. Ramone, Johnny Ramone | 1:33 |
9. | "A Real Cool Time" | Joey Ramone | 2:38 |
10. | "I'm Not Jesus" | R. Ramone | 2:52 |
11. | "Bye Bye Baby" | Joey Ramone | 4:33 |
12. | "Worm Man" | D. Ramone | 1:52 |
Personnel
Ramones
- Joey Ramone – lead vocals (tracks 1–7, 9–12)
- Johnny Ramone – guitar
- Dee Dee Ramone – bass guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals (track 8)
- Richie Ramone – drums, backing vocals
Additional musicians
- Debbie Harry – backing vocals (track 5)
- Walter Lure – additional guitar
- Daniel Rey – bass guitar
Production
- Jorge Esteban – engineering
- Howard Shillingford – assistant engineer
- DJ Walker – assistant engineer
- Joe Blaney – mixing
- Richie Ramone – mixing (uncredited)
- Jack Skinner – mastering
- George DuBose – photography, cover design
- Mark Weinberg – art direction
Charts
Chart (1987) | Peak position |
---|---|
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[52] | 68 |
Finnish Albums ( The Official Finnish Charts)[53]
|
24 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[54] | 43 |
UK Albums (OCC)[55] | 78 |
US Billboard 200[56] | 172 |
See also
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Ramones | Halfway to Serenity". AllMusic. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ True 2010, p. 273
- ^ a b c d e Meyer & Melnick 2007, p. xxi
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ^ a b True 2010, p. 276
- ^ a b True 2010, pp. 274–275
- ^ Leigh 1994, pp. 332
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ^ a b True 2010, p. 277
- ^ Richie Ramone & Eric Blair Talk Ramones & New Book 2018, retrieved 2022-07-16
- ^ True 2010, p. 270
- ^ a b True 2010, p. 268–269
- ^ Leigh 1994, pp. 357
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ^ True 2010, p. 279
- ^ a b Thompson 2000, p. 582
- ^ True 2010, pp. 283–284
- ^ True 2010, p. 278
- ^ True 2010, pp. 282, 284
- ^ a b c "Ramones: Halfway to Sanity". Digital Audio and Compact Disc Review. 4 (7–12). WGE Publishing, Inc: 72. 1988.
- ^ True 2010, p. 282
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ^ a b True 2010, pp. 283
- ^ a b True 2010, pp. 280–281
- ^ True 2010, pp. 213, 249, 279
- ^ a b c True 2010, p. 284
- ^ True 2010, pp. 282–283
- ISBN 978-0-8109-9660-1.
- ^ True 2010, p. 288
- ^ Richie Ramone & Eric Blair Talk Ramones & New Book 2018, retrieved 2022-07-16
- ^ Richie Ramone & Eric Blair Talk Ramones & New Book 2018, retrieved 2022-07-16
- ^ a b True 2010, p. 289
- ^ Richie Ramone & Eric Blair Talk Ramones & New Book 2018, retrieved 2022-07-16
- ^ a b c d e f g True 2010, p. 290
- ISBN 9781786062864.
- ^ a b c True 2010, p. 291
- ^ Village Voice. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ISBN 978-0-679-75574-6.
- ^ True 2010, p. 292
- ^ True 2010, p. 293
- ^ "Top 200 Albums". Billboard. 1987-10-10. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ "Top 200 Albums". Billboard. 1987-10-24. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ "The Official Charts Company – The Ramones". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- MegaCharts. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Ramones – Halfway To Sanity". swedishcharts.com. Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Ramones Mania – Ramones | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (1999-07-20). "Hey! Ho! Let's Go: Ramones Anthology – The Ramones | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-02-10.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2006-06-06). "Greatest Hits – The Ramones | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-02-10.
- CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
- ^ Prato, Greg. "Review: Ezkaton". AllMusic. Retrieved 2009-08-27.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Ramones – Halfway to Sanity" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Ramones – Halfway to Sanity". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ^ "Ramones Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
Bibliography
- Leigh, Mickey (1994). I Slept with Joey Ramone: A Family Memoir. ISBN 978-0-7432-5216-4.
- Meyer, Frank; Melnick, Monte (2007). On the Road with the Ramones. Bobcat Books. ISBN 978-1-86074-514-0.
- Porter, Dick (2004). Ramones: The Complete Twisted History. ISBN 978-0-85965-326-8.
- Ramone, Johnny (2012). Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone. Abrams Books. ISBN 978-1-61312-181-8.
- Schinder, Scott (2007). Icons of Rock: An Encyclopedia of the Legends Who Changed Music Forever. Vol. 2. ISBN 978-0-313-33847-2.
- Thompson, Dave (2000). Alternative Rock : Third Ear – The Essential Listening Companion. BackBeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-607-6.
- ISBN 978-1-84449-413-2.
- Ramone, Johnny (2012). Commando: The Autobiography of Johnny Ramone. Abrams Books. ISBN 978-1-61312-181-8.